Capitalism and greed gave Britain its vaccine success, PM Johnson says – By Costas Pitas (Reuters) / Mar 24 2021
LONDON (Reuters) – Capitalism and greed gave Britain its success in vaccinating its population, Prime Minister Boris Johnson told lawmakers in a closed meeting, a remark that could rile up Brussels at a time when Britain faces an EU threat to block vaccine imports.
Delivery worker distributes a Pfizer/BioNtech COVID-19 vaccine box at Feldon Lane Surgery in Halesowen, West Midlands, as hundreds of COVID-19 vaccination centres run by local doctors begin opening across England December 14, 2020. Jacob King/PA Wire/Pool via REUTERS
“The reason we have the vaccine success is because of capitalism, because of greed my friends,” The Sun newspaper quoted Johnson as telling Conservative lawmakers on a Zoom meeting on Tuesday evening.
Johnson then tried to row back and said: “Actually I regret saying it” and asked lawmakers repeatedly to “forget I said that”.
Britain has so far mounted the fastest COVID-19 vaccine programme of any big country. But it now finds its programme threatened by the EU, which has been far slower in rolling out vaccines and faces a third wave of infections.
